Pilot’s widow sues Google co-founder over deadly crash
Google co-founder Sergey Brin is being sued by the widow of a pilot who died in a crash last year on a flight bound for Brin’s private island, according to court records.
The aircraft crashed in the Pacific Ocean on May 20 following a fuel system malfunction — killing the two people on board, both pilots, as detailed in an amended complaint filed Feb. 13 by widow Maria Magdalena Olarte Maclean.
The complaint accuses Brin of wrongful death and interfering with the recovery of the remains — listing as co-defendants Google, the company responsible for maintaining the aircraft along with its aviation director, the company that installed the fuel system and Brin’s investment firm. The aircraft took off with just the pilots Lance Maclean and Dean Rushfeldt aboard from a Sonoma County airstrip, heading for Honolulu ultimately set for Brin’s private Fiji island, according to the complaint.
The 19-passenger aircraft — used for “commuter travel” according to the aircraft manufacturer Viking Air — was owned and operated by Brin, the investment firm and Google, the complaint stated.
Hours into the flight, the pilots began radioing the maintenance company because the aircraft was not working properly — the fuel was not transferring into the fuel tanks, according to the complaint.
Maclean diverted the aircraft back to California and for an hour and a half company personnel tried to troubleshoot the issue via the radio without success, according to the complaint.
The fuel system was illegally put in place, lacked the proper paperwork and was installed “from memory,” the complaint alleges.
The pilots aimed for the closest airstrip near Half Moon Bay as the situation became dire but crashed before making it there, the complaint stated.
A U.S. Coast Guard swimmer attempted to rescue Maclean and Rushfeld but found both of them dead, strapped into their seats in the sinking cockpit, the complaint stated. Their bodies were unable to be recovered by the Coast Guard at that time, so they continued to sink, the complaint stated.
Following the crash, Olarte Maclean said, Brin’s agents lied to her by telling her that they could not legally recover the bodies due to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration constraints, when there were none, the complaint read. In the complaint she accused Brin of delaying the recovery of her husband’s body and aircraft remains, claiming he attempted to bury evidence showing the fuel system was illegally installed.
The suit is asking for at least $150,000 for damages including emotional and financial.
Google did not immediately respond for comment.
In a statement sent to NBC about the lawsuit, a spokesperson for Brin’s family office wrote, “We are deeply saddened by the loss of the crew piloting the De Havilland DCH6-400 Twin Otter airplane, and our sympathies remain with the families. We are not able to comment on pending legal action at this time.”